Year 2006

Project Type Pilot Project, project with multiplying effect (2000-2006)

Status completed

Country TR-Turkey

Marketing Text Compared to previous remote laboratory applications in electrical and electronics engineering area, the scope and capabilities of ERRL is much wider and serves more diverse users. ERRL aims to furnish the qualifications, which are demanded by today’s ICT industry. It intends to provide access to modern teaching materials and remote experiments, which are very complicated and very expensive equipment that are not currently accessible for most students, engineers and technicians. Therefore the benefits and utilities provided by ERRL are far more valuable than any remote lab application realized so far. The project has been started in 2007 and as a pilot study, first modules are implemented. Currently, the system is operational and integrated into curricula of some courses of the promoter organisation.

Summary European Remote Radio Laboratory (ERRL)1 initiative aims to develop a laboratory platform that provides, with distant access to high technology equipment through Internet, theoretical and particularly practical radio communications training to those groups including technicians and engineers involved in radio communications field of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sector in Atılım University laboratory. As a transnational laboratory, the ERRL intends to allow its users perform web-based experiments, and follow course materials in Radio frequency (RF), microwave and communication field, at any place and any time.

Description ERRL project, generally arise from a web server that consist of sub units such as laboratory equipments, Workbench Server (WBS) and EPSS (Electronic Performance Support System) software, Java Applets, Learning Management System (LMS) and a user interface. Workbench Server (WBS) is the lowest layer of the system. This software establishes the communication between instruments and the user interfaces through the ERRL database.

Electronic Performance System (EPSS) is developed to prepare the learners to be ready for doing experiments with the specific instruments. The EPSS part of the ERRL project has specific instructions for each instrument in the system. The EPSS also covers some initial experiments to help the learner better understand each instrument. However, these initial experiments are designed as simulation of actual experiments and do not work remotely. It uses real data which is previously prepared for that experiment and stored in the database.

Learning Management System (LMS), moodle has been chosen in the ERRL, is an open source LMS used in the ERRL project. The content about the experiments is defined in the LMS. The LMS database and the ERRL information system database are linked together in order to support integration. For the ERRL User Interface, LMS is the main element that shapes the ERRL user interface. In the ERRL project, Moodle is used as an open source e-education tool. Moodle is an on-line course management system that can handle many required activities in a remote education site. The most important features of moodle are that, it can be learned by everybody (instructor, student) and it’s having an advanced user interface. Experiment interfaces, EPSS software and all the content about experiments have been embedded into this online course management software. Every learning object in the user interface (Experiment software, theoretical content, etc.) is added to the moodle software as a scorm object due to the standardization need of the system in any update or transfer. SCORM is a set of specifications for developing, packaging and delivering high-quality education and training content/materials in web-based learning system whenever and wherever they are needed. Firstly, users and educators are added to the system with ERRL user interface. The user that log in to the system, learn own knowledge with skill level tests and own level in experiment setup. In the following steps, before users start the experiments, determination of users’ knowledge about the measurement devices is performed. In the EPSS system, education about measurement devices and their basic usage is performed to the users not have a sufficient experience. Users having adequate knowledge start experiments.

Themes     ICT
    Higher education
    Open and distance learning
    Lifelong learning
    Access for disadvantaged
    Continuous training

Sectors     Information and Communication
    Education

Product Types open and distance learning
website
teaching material

Product information -Teaching materials: the use of test and measurement devices
-Content: for remotely accessible training environment for teaching measurement techniques and the use of related equipments
-EPSS (Electronic Performance Support System) content on the use of the ERRL equipment
-A system comprising a modular structure that enables definition of qualification levels, which may also serve as a certification in EU level
-An up-to-date course content in the ERRL concept
-A test bank to assess the theoretical knowledge of users at different skills
-Data and assessments on knowledge of the target groups, at European Level, in the ERRL domain
-Documents and reports about each activity is prepared
-User interface for remote use of the ERRL system
-Internet accessible experiment modules
-Internet accessible learning materials

Projecthomepage http://errlmoodle.atilim.edu.tr/